Callum McGregor

I like having guys like McGregor kicking about the squad, maybe not the best but a useful player that knows the club and what's expected, who can sometimes do the unexpected. Can cover a few different positions and is happy being a squad player.

We can spend a lot of money getting a conveyor belt of other midfielders that will come and go and not really do much of anything (Gordon Strachan style) or you can keep guys like that kicking about the squad, coming in and covering.

It's why I always wanted to keep the likes of Darren O'Dea. Knew what was needed here, was decent cover, had an edge that made him a bit different to our other defenders and we had to end up getting guys like Rami Gershon to cover.

Makes no sense to me. Unless of course, they want to leave, then they can go. They aren't good enough to try and hold us to ransom but as squad players, knowing when to plug the gaps year in, year out? That's pretty useful.

Alex Ferguson used to do the same with John O'Shea, Wes Brown etc. quite average players that knew what was to be expected of them.

 

When he first broke in we called him the new mcgowan. Hes played 92 games more than mcgowan now so shows how wrong we were.

Great squad player. Not sure how much better he will get. Hes changed into a more central player from the wide right days.

Well worth keeping around the squad. Looks like a real part of the squad too. Always involved in celebrations and so on.

 

Agree 100%

We've had some good players come through our academy in the last 10-15 years.
Some had good careers at Celtic, some we sold too soon and some we let stagnate for too long, when they could have played more at a younger age, whether it was here or on loan. Some of the examples were out of our control.

David Marshall, Shaun Maloney, Aiden McGeady, Stephen McManus, John Kennedy, Ross Wallace, Stephen Crainey, James Forrest, Kieran Tierney, Craig Beattie, Liam Miller, Darren O'Dea, Charlie Mulgrew, Tony Watt, Callum McGregor, Paul Caddis,

There's probably more that I've missed. There are plenty of names in that group that definitely could have given us a little more. You could probably form a pretty decent XI out of them.

Marshall
Caddis Kennedy McManus Tierney
Forrest Miller Wallace McGeady
Maloney Watt​

 

I agree mate, the route for me is loan at a young age for game time, if good enough come in and supplement the squad, if good enough first teamer of course.

It's the way Martin O'Neill done it, likes of Maloney, McGeady, Kennedy, Marshall, Miller, Wallace, Jamie Smith were all the sort of back up, squad players and the first team we spent money on for quality.

Unless you're like a Kieran Tierney, where you don't need the loan and you cement your place in right away but that's the exception.

 

If he had composure in the final 3rd he'd be a cracking player, bottles it far too often when breaking at teams. Still like him but would rather see Henderson given a chance now ahead of him.

 

Tic Tv interview
https://streamable.com/gxiic

 

Glided through the game, covered so much ground. What I have came to expect from him.

 

Much better flow of the game when he is in ahead ofBiton.

 

Would always start him away from home. His ability to take the ball under pressure and keep us ticking over is vital.

Never ever hides.

 

There'd be a better flow if a bollard was in instead of Biton

 

he is a decent player but I'd rather the ball landed at my deed grans feet than his in front of goal.

 

Thought he played very well too, nice dummys for two of the goals Sinclairs 2nd I think to Roberts and then for Armstrong

 

Seems to play well against this mob..

3 on the trot this season..

 

Thought he was excellent again today.. perfectly good goal chopped off and should have scored another when Sinclair fed him nicely in the first half..

Thought the 3-4-3 formation suited him, seemed to find space well.

He's an ideal squad player.

 

Lovely little feint for Armstrongs goal.

 

Would like an upgrade on McGregor for next year's Champions League campaign * willing.
Whether that is Kouassi Eboue or someone else I don't know.
But to be honest, my heart sinks when I see McGregor's name on the team sheet.

 

I really like Callum McGregor.

Neat in possession, works hard, is a real team player and is actually quite an intelligent footballer. He has a limit in terms of the level he can perform at - he won't ever be a reliable player in the Champions League for us, but that's not to say he isn't a useful player.

Plus, he's Scottish and he came through our academy. For me, that's important.

 

For me I think his time is done here. A solid player but he's not the level of player I want to see on the bench in big games, and he's getting too old to be left out of the squad.